(SitNews) Anchorage, Alaska - Last week, KYUK-AM reported that over 130 residents in the village of Mertarvik did not receive primary election ballots due to an Alaska Division of Elections oversight.

Mertarvik is a newly established community in the Lower Kuskokwim region of Alaska for residents of Newtok, who have been required to relocate because of riverbank erosion. The Division has indicated that they were unaware anyone lived in the new community, despite residents living in the community for over a year. As a consequence, only 17 residents of Mertarvik voted.

 “It is deeply troubling that 130 Alaskans were disenfranchised this past August,” said Senator Donny Olson (D-Golovin). “We must do everything in our power to protect Alaskans’ right to vote. Even unintended suppression of indigenous voices is simply wrong and seriously troubling.”  

Senator Olson and Senator Lyman Hoffman (D-Bethel) are calling for increased oversight and transparency with the Division of Elections, and has asked the Division to outline steps they will take to ensure communities throughout rural Alaska will have flawless access to an election ballot for the upcoming general election.

“Every vote is equal, and we need to protect the opportunity for all Alaskans to have their voice heard,” said Sen. Hoffman. “The Division needs to outline their plan to ensure every rural Alaska community has access to a ballot. What happened in Mertarvik is completely unacceptable.”

“Only having the public and elected officials find out about these issues when the media reported it is deeply troubling,” continued Sen. Olson. “This should have brought to the attention of stakeholders, elected officials, and the public immediately after it was known, not a month and a half later.”

Edited By Mary Kauffman, SitNews

Source of News:

Alaska Senate Democrats
www.akleg.gov

Representations of fact and opinions in comments posted are solely those of the individual posters and do not represent the opinions of Sitnews.

SitNews ©2020
Stories In The News
Ketchikan, Alaska

Articles & photographs that appear in SitNews are considered protected by copyright and may not be reprinted without written permission from and payment of any required fees to the proper freelance writers and subscription services. E-mail your news & photos to editor@sitnews.us Photographers choosing to submit photographs for publication to SitNews are in doing so granting their permission for publication and for archiving. SitNews does not sell photographs. All requests for purchasing a photograph will be emailed to the photographer.